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Fall Favorites

The Deviled Egg Tray of My Dreams… (Great Gift Idea for Cooks Too)

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One of the foods we have every single holiday is deviled eggs… except we call them “Kangaroo eggs” because one of my daughters gave them this nickname when she was 4 and, by gosh, it was so cute, it stuck!

Speaking of stick (nice, unexpected segue here), my beautiful glass heirloom tray looks fantastic on the table, but in the fridge is a whole other situation – the plastic wrap I have to use always sticks to the eggs, messing up the paprika sprinkled on top while smooshing the nice little mounds completely.

This is the year I am finally investing in a set of great looking Deviled Egg Trays with Lids (Amazon link). Not sure where this set has been all my life but now that it’s in my sights, a whole new world just opened up.

This wonderful set includes three trays with lids, which means you can make enough Kangaroo eggs for everyone to take plenty home with them!

From Amazon:

  • Lightweight plastic is great for toting from kitchen to party without being too flimsy to ruin your wonderful deviled eggs.
  • Not only do you get high quality but comes in a great 3 pack for extra eggs at your big event.
  •  Keeps your eggs exactly where you need them to be so they aren’t sliding all over the place and making a mess.
  • Easily stack these handy deviled egg trays one on top of another for easy storage in the fridge before the big party.
  • Strong and sturdy foodsafe BPA free plastic makes for a high quality deviled egg carrier that you can use again and again.

One of the reviews left on Amazon pointed out that these are very easy to store also – another plus!

Take a closer look: Deviled Egg Tray with a Lid (Amazon link)

 

The Nightmare Before Christmas Dish Set (LOVE THIS!)

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While this gorgeous, unexpected, and FUN 16 Piece The Nightmare Before Christmas Dish Set (Amazon link) is frighteningly perfect for Halloween, I can’t help thinking that it’d make a perfect gift idea for some lucky movie fan.

My youngest daughter and son-in-law love and collect this particular film, so their names are all over it.

Well.. so to speak.

Product Description from Amazon:

  • Trendy dinnerware: This spellbinding kitchen dish set is a must-have for fans of Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas.
  • Spooky style: The entire dinnerware set features designs inspired by Disney’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, including a spider web border that ties all the pieces together in a cohesive style.
  • Quality construction: Made of a durable ceramic material, this Nightmare Before Christmas kitchen dinnerware set is both microwave and dishwasher safe.
  • Complete dinnerware set contains: 16 pieces, including 4 complete place settings. The entire dish set comes with a total of 4 dinner plates (10.5 inches), 4 salad plates (8 inches), 4 bowls (7 inches), and 4 mugs (10.5 ounces).
  • Fun & functional: Featuring amazing designs and practical for everyday use, this dinnerware set is crafted with true Nightmare Before Christmas fans in mind. This ceramic dish set is a perfect gift for fans of Tim Burton and the iconic Disney movie.

See 16 Piece The Nightmare Before Christmas Dish Set (Amazon link) for more information. I can’t tell you how much I need this for Halloween!

Gorgeous Soup Bowl and Sandwich Plate Combo (Great Gift Idea for Cooks)

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Mentally and emotionally I have turned the corner…. I’ve left summer behind and have launched myself right into Autumn’s crisp leaves and gentle breeze!

The house is already decked out with creepers, happy ghosts, pumpkins, and bears dressed up for Halloween. We’re all ready for fall.. now all it has to do is show up!

I’m also making the summer to fall transition in the kitchen as soup and chili begin to replace salads and grilled burgers. In fact, today marked the first day that a pot of chili returns to the home. I served it with pimento cheese sandwiches and it was fantastic.

As I thought about the number of times (during fall and winter) that we take our soup or chili and hot dogs/sandwiches into the den to watch football (Go UK Wildcats! and Go Broncos!) or October baseball (Go Cardinals!), it occurred to me that I needed to find handy coup and plate trays. Truth be told, I wasn’t even 100 percent sure such a thing existed, I just knew what would be extraordinarily cool.

I went directly to Amazon to see if the coolness existed and badabing!… of course Amazon had just what I was looking for.

They always do.

The Artena Bowl and Sandwich Plate Combo (Amazon link) is EXACTLY what I need. I love that it’s available in different colors (I honestly had no idea I’d find any this gorgeous).

  • Available in teal blue, lake blue, mint green, and soft pink.
  • Ideal size – perfect for fitting a sandwich or chili dog on in addition to the generous mug of soup or chili.
  • I also love the options these would provide for breakfast food – grits or oatmeal with French toast or biscuits yum!
  • When you click through and take a closer look at the colors, be sure to check out the video that’s available – you’ll get a better idea of just how gorgeous, well-made, and roomy these are.


Gorgeous Halloween Candy Dish (MUST have!)

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I love to decorate HEAVILY for each season and each holiday. It’s just a wonderful, colorful way to celebrate and embrace each moment we’re currently living in.

While Christmas is my Super Bowl, I have to say that Halloween is right behind it. As I’m typing these words, I already have the house and yard decorated with Halloween colors and characters. Am I early this year?

I am RIDICULOUSLY early this year! But, as I explained in the last post, I have two daughters who all but live for this time of year and three grandbabies (all boys under 4) who I live to entertain and amuse… so early it is!

I found this gorgeous Halloween Candy Dish (Amazon link) earlier, online, and I am completely in love. One of the Halloween things I collect are what I call “Happy ghosts,” that is to say ghosts that aren’t scary or looking for trouble. This one absolutely fits the bill and I love her pumpkin friend and candy corn.

You can find this beauty on Amazon – as well as a LOT of other Halloween decorations and dishes to make your world come alive with the season.


I Ain’t Afraid of No Ghosts (In Fact I Lowkey Love Them)

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My favorite Halloween collectibles are ghosts – love them to distraction. Last count I had 64 figurines or collectibles of some type.   Hoping to hit the magic number (100) by next Halloween.

A girl’s gotta have a ghoul… I mean goal. 

Naturally the two ghostly beauties shown here are (as we speak) haunting my Amazon shopping cart.

First up is the adorable Halloween Ghost Salt & Pepper Set (Amazon link) from Mud Pie. Mud Pie absolutely makes some of my favorite things – I  search for their name on Amazon as much as I search for anything.

The little cuties come with their own little wooden fence and I have no idea how I’ll be able to keep from leaving them out all year.

The set is 3 1/4″ x 4 1/2″ and, while perfectly “usable,” I’d never dream of doing anything but allow them to sit on the table and just show off.

I’m also very smitten with another Halloween beauty from Mud Pie and it’s pictured below.

The Mud Pie Ghost Pitcher Set (Amazon link) will, of course, sit right beside the salt and pepper set and (again) I have no idea how I’ll ever bring myself to pack it away for the season.

Mud Pie Ghost Pitcher Set

Boo-tiful Halloween Dip Bowl Set (Love This so Much!)

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Not sure how I ever lived without this ADORABLE Halloween Dip Bowl Set (Amazon link).  This time of year is so wonderful it defies description. I have always been (and will always be) completely obsessed with Christmas and Thanksgiving but, quite frankly, I’ve only comparatively recently become obsessed with Halloween.

Maybe the older we get the more we truly, truly appreciate things that are just wildly fun and come with zero expectations… things that simply want to make everyone smile.

That’s Halloween season to a tee.

There’s a certain magic when you combine kids with Halloween. Now the kids in my life are all either in their 50s (husband), 30s (daughters and sons-in-law) or toddlers (grandbabies!) and making them smile is the one thing in the world that makes me smile the most.

Okay, my cats would figure in there too but their smiles are more audible than visual.

This colorful, fun, and deliciously unique dip bowl set is available on Amazon (they have so many beautiful Halloween dishes and decorations, I’m having a hard time not buying everything!).

  • 2-piece set
  • Nested set of two dipping bowls feature debossed sentiment rims, hand-painted interior stripes and exterior icon artwork
  • Material: Dolomite
  • Size: Size: small 2″ x 3 1/2″ | large 2

Please see the adorable Halloween Dip Bowl Set (Amazon link) for a closer look.

 

Have You Invested in a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer Yet?! Here’s Why I Think You Should….

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Ironically, in spite of ALWAYS saying, “You’ll only be as great a cook as your tools and ingredients allow you to be,” I put off buying a KitchenAid stand mixer for years. And years.

The very person who consistently pays more for most ingredients and who grabs every new kitchen gadget that hits the market put off buying something because it, “… seems so high.”

If I didn’t do a great deal of baking, it’d be more forgivable but with a large family, there are always birthday cakes to make, homemade icing to throw together, candies, pies, and whatnot. And that in’t even counting Thanksgiving and Christmas – my annual grand finales!

I knew Kitchenaid stand mixers were gorgeous and knew the brand had one of the best reputations in the business but I  honestly assumed my handheld mixer could do anything it could and I knew it was far cheaper. More on the faulty assumption in a minute.

Earlier this year, my youngest daughter got a Kitchenaid stand mixer (Amazon link) and immediately began to rave about it. She’s one of the rare humans who does as much baking and cooking as I do, so when she recommends something, I listen. I decided to test her Kitchenaid out with something I make each week – Homemade Whipped Cream. My husband and I love it in our coffee (as well as on ice cream, cakes, cookies… heck, I’ve even seen him eat it right out of the bowl).

(Continued Below the Whipped Cream!)

Homemade Whipped Cream

Homemade Whipped Cream (Recipe) 

First of all, I fell in love with the fact that all I had to do was put all of the ingredients into the bowl and that the Kitchenaid did the rest. My right arm marveled at something being beaten without it feeling the burden.

However, if the results had been the same, I would have stayed loyal to my handheld for the rest of my life.

The results were not even remotely the same. My homemade whipped cream has always been delicious but this time it had a MUCH better consistency – a consistency that made it look better and, somehow, even taste better. I remember picking it up with a spoon and thinking how much it looked like store-bought whipped cream. My handheld never did that.

Then it hit me… if the Kitchenaid stand mixer (Amazon link) makes this big of a difference with something as simple as whipped cream, imagine the difference it can make with cakes, pies, cookies, brownies, divinity, fudge… that was it. I was sold.

Yes, a Kitchenaid stand mixer  is more expensive than hand held mixers and, yes, for most of us, they’re somewhat of an investment. But here’s the thing, if the meals we make for our loved ones aren’t worth it, nothing is.

I would never recommend anything to my readers that I don’t absolutely love and use. I’d never suggest you buy something unless I knew you’d love it – I’m just not built that way.

I’m 100 percent certain you will love a  Kitchenaid stand mixer (Amazon link) as much as I do.  From what I’ve read, other stand mixers do not hold a candle to the Kitchenaid brand, so I wouldn’t get sidetracked there, if I were you. Kitchenaid is a household name and experience has shown me why.

See Also: Recipe for the Best Whipped Cream!

KitchenAid

KitchenAid Stand Mixer

Nightmare on Elm Street Freddie Kruger Halloween Bowl Holder (YIKES!)

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This A Nightmare on Elm Street Freddy Krueger Candy Bowl Holder (Amazon Link) are SO up my oldest daughter and oldest son-in-law’s haunted alley it isn’t even funny. They love Halloween as much as some people love oxygen and go ALL OUT each year – inside the house and outside the house, they leave no doubt as to what season it is.

A Nightmare on Elm Street is one of his favorite movies of all time (right up there with Top Gun), so I know this candy bowl holder would make his entire Halloween season.

If you embrace Halloween like they do, you might want to click through and take a closer look at this macabre little dude.

Product Description from Amazon:

  • Lightweight injection molded figure crafted from heavy duty foam, with hollow back designed to stand flush against a wall
  • Base is approximately 10-inch square, stands approximately 18-inches tall
  • Includes plastic bowl, 9.75” across and 3.5″ deep
  • Officially licensed figure adds personality to your home or office
  • Not just for candy, can be used to hold business cards, keys, coins, pens, party favors, and much more

For more information and a closer look (if you aren’t scared!) see A Nightmare on Elm Street Freddy Krueger Candy Bowl Holder (Amazon Link).

Halloween Dishtowels: Yes… My Mind IS Already on Halloween!

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How cute and colorful are these Halloween dish towels (Amazon link)??!! From everything I’ve seen (online and in stores), plaid is huge this year. Personally, I love it every year, but I’m seeing it everywhere this year – especially in black and white.

One of my biggest kitchen quirks and obsessions is dish towels. I celebrate each season with coordinating towels on the oven handle for show and in the drawer for go!

I can’t wait to add this set of three beauties to the rotation.  They’re 100 percent cotton, machine washable (tumble on low in a dryer) and measure 18×28 inches.

While I plan to use them in the kitchen, they’d also be ideal for a bathroom.

See Halloween dish towels (Amazon link) for a closer look and for more information. These are just so darn cute!

 

ADORABLE Halloween Candy Dishes

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It’s September 1st so, in my little world anyway, that means it’s officially Halloween Season! It’s such a deliciously fun time of year, why wait for October when you can start now and have TWO months of fun instead of one?

This incredibly creative and adorable Witch Broom with Hats (Amazon link) set is available on Amazon and I couldn’t throw it into my cart fast enough. I, personally, envision candy in the little hat dishes but they’d be just as wonderful with pretzels, popcorn, nuts… just about anything you can imagine.

Features:

  • Perfect for a Halloween buffet or to sit out all autumn.
  • This great-looking, tabletop broom props three ceramic, pumpkin-shaped bowls for serving up all kinds of goodies from candy to popcorn.
  • Very unique… I’ve never seen anything quite like this!
  • It brings a fun and festive Halloween atmosphere to your whole home.
  • A beautiful, eye-catching addition to any room… okay, maybe not the bathroom… unless, of course, you put colorful miniature soaps in the hats.

See Witch Broom with Hats (Amazon link) for a closer look. You’re going to love this as much as I do!